Shen Ruodi glanced with interest at the girl crawling at his feet, his fingertips lightly tapping the shadow puppet.

"Little Mumu, do you like her?" he suddenly asked.

The puppet blinked, black energy filling its eyes, and a gust of wind suddenly swept towards Cheng Jingru.

Cheng Jingru thought this was a test and dared not dodge, but then, there was a loud crack.

She covered her face, which was stinging from the slap, and looked up in disbelief.

Shen Ruodi said casually, "My shadow puppet doesn't want your body and soul. You can leave now."

Cheng Jingru clenched her fingers tightly, feeling extremely humiliated.

What do you mean my shadow puppet doesn't want her? She didn't sacrifice herself to the shadow puppet!

Besides, the Shadow Puppet is so kind to Mingzhuo, so how could I be less kind to Mingzhuo?

Mingzhuo said coldly, "Now that you've finished explaining, can you step down? Or do you want to fight?"

She conjured a peach wood sword with a swift motion.

Shen Ruodi said gently, "Alright, then I'll be going."

This time, Mingzhuo didn't stab him with his sword right away, so he couldn't help but linger a little longer.

Of course, she wouldn't fight. Mingzhuo has always been ruthless and taciturn; she'd rather take action than waste words. The reason she's threatening me like this is because she doesn't have the strength to fight me again.

These past few days, I've been battling the demons, performing rituals to appease the masses in the mass graves suppressed by Buddhist temples, and today I'm going to have to fight these monks and esoteric masters.

No matter how exceptionally talented Mingzhuo is, he is still made of flesh and blood.

What she needs most right now is a good rest.

In his past life, Ah Yin didn't live to be a hundred years old; in this life, he only wants her to live longer.

Shen Ruodi left without warning. The old man with the sword and the four eminent monks were all injured and knew they couldn't stop him, so they didn't make any rash moves.

The puppet sat upright on Shen Ruodi's shoulder, then suddenly turned its head and glanced at Ming Zhuo with its dark eyes.

Its eyes held reluctance and grievance; it didn't want to part with Mingzhuo.

But they had no choice but to leave.

Those old Taoist priests and bald monks are really annoying. We can't kill them, yet they dare to boss Zhuo Zhuo around.

However, Zhuozhuo had taught these people a lesson, which was considered a way of venting its anger.

——

Shen Ruodi's figure disappeared into the night like a ghost.

The ethereal bell sound disappeared, and so did the terrifying and eerie pressure.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, but couldn't help but cast admiring glances at Ming Zhuo. The big boss was indeed a big boss, to be able to make such a terrifying ghost king obey his orders!

Of course, being completely obedient is an exaggeration, but Ming Zhuo's imposing manner with his sword was indeed quite intimidating.

Shen Ruodi was probably killed by Ming Zhuo once, which left him with a psychological shadow, which is why he left without looking back.

In short, Mingzhuo is amazing! He just fought against the Sword-wielding Elder and the Four Great Monks, and his aura was in no way inferior, completely intimidating the Ghost King.

They were genuinely on edge, fearing that the Ghost King might discover that several experts were injured and try to do something to them.

Mingzhuo felt that the people from Xuanmen were looking at him strangely. "What are you looking at me for? Do you want to fight?"

With a whoosh, everyone took a few steps back, too afraid to fight!

"Amitabha Buddha, Layman Ruan's cultivation is so profound that we are all in awe of his inferiority, and his heart and mind are even more admirable." The leading monk said with his hands clasped together.

His tone was very sincere and full of gratitude.

"Shen Ruodi's appearance tonight was definitely intended to wipe us all out. We were foolish and almost fell into his trap, making a grave mistake! Fortunately, Layman Ruan turned the tide, not only preventing casualties tonight but also seeing through Shen Ruodi's conspiracy, preserving our strength and forcing Shen Ruodi to leave. His cultivation, magnanimity, and strategy are truly rare in this humble monk's life!"

Mingzhao: "..."

Isn't it said that monks don't flatter? How did this bald monk manage to flatter so smoothly?

The two elderly men wielding swords also looked ashamed, saying, "We were reckless tonight."

Shen Boyuan pursed his lips tightly. He was the one who went to invite the two sword-wielding elders out of seclusion. Regardless of whether he was deceived or not, he was still to blame.

"I'm sorry, I will go to the punishment hall in person to receive my punishment."

This mistake was too serious. Not only did they suspect their fellow disciples, but they also almost put the Sword-wielding Elder in danger, allowing the Ghost King to capture them all.

He couldn't face the stupid part of himself. He had made the same mistake a long time ago, so why was he making the same error again?

Perhaps because Cheng Jingru wasn't the type to talk nonsense, and she had lived with Mingzhuo for over a decade, he believed her.

He just didn't expect that someone as upright as Cheng Jingru would have selfish motives and take advantage of his trust.

Shen Boyuan turned and glanced at Cheng Jingru.

After Cheng Jingru confessed to his crimes, disciples from the Punishment Hall stepped forward and apprehended him.

The Soul-Binding Lock, originally used by the Punishment Hall to bind Ming Zhuo, was now used to bind Cheng Jingru.

One second she was a highly respected junior sister of the Xuanmen sect, and the next she became a destitute prisoner.

It's hard not to feel a sense of regret.

Cheng Jingru remained silent and composed, seemingly having fallen into a state of utter despair and stillness after being rejected by Shen Ruodi.

Seemingly noticing Shen Boyuan's gaze, she looked up.

The look in his eyes in that instant was so shattered that it seemed as if his entire being was about to turn into crystal and shatter into millions of pieces.

Shen Boyuan abruptly withdrew his gaze and turned his back: "Take him away."

"Wait a minute." Mingzhuo hadn't spoken up before because she felt that the two seemed to be acting out some kind of life-or-death parting, their eyes lingering and inseparable, and she didn't want to interrupt.

“You knew perfectly well that your mother’s death had nothing to do with me, yet you still tried to fight me to the death despite all the obstacles. What kind of logic is that?” Mingzhuo asked.

Cheng Jingru's eyelashes trembled, and she looked up at her with red eyes.

"You don't need to rush to shirk responsibility. If it weren't for you, how could our family have ended up in this situation today?"

Chu Yuqi was right. Ming Zhuo had clearly stolen their family's fortune, yet now he acted all sanctimonious and disgusting.

Cheng Jingru turned her head away, unwilling to look at Ming Zhuo any longer.

When Mingzhuo saw that look, he immediately realized something was wrong; it was clear that the person still harbored a lot of resentment towards him!

She thought to herself, "Since that's the case, why should I be polite?"

She used to cherish the friendship from her childhood, and because the other person was young, she was unwilling to treat the girl she had so often protected with malice.

Now she wants to let the other party experience the harsh realities of society.

"Leaving aside how Yuan Qingwan escaped from the Xuanmen's heavy guard, the person who attacked Linglan at the hotel that day is probably connected to you, isn't he?"

Mingzhuo smiled and gently tapped the hilt of the peach wood sword with his fingers.

"You learned that Linglan had been taken away by Elder Bai, and since I deliberately spread the word, you were worried that Chu Yuqi could actually get some information from Linglan, so you simply put some evil stuff in the food, trying to take someone's life silently."

Cheng Jingru: "If you want to condemn someone, you can always find a pretext."

She simply refused to admit it.

Framed Mingzhuo and killed Linglan Bai's family are different in nature. One is to avenge his mother, which is understandable. The other is to indiscriminately kill innocent people and is vicious.

Mingzhuo: "Is this a fabricated charge? Why don't we search the gods and find out?"